


My Whole World

by Chloe_303



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, Fluff and Angst, Mentions of off-screen sexual assault, Minor Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra), Minor Mermista/Sea Hawk (She-Ra), Minor Perfuma/Scorpia (She-Ra), Original Child Characters, Self-Esteem Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-25
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:00:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27198169
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chloe_303/pseuds/Chloe_303
Summary: Adora loves her daughter. She really, truly does. She just doesn’t think she's good enough to be her parent. Thankfully, a certain brunette may be able to prove her otherwise.
Relationships: Adora & Catra (She-Ra), Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 206





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Just as a heads up, this is the first fanfic I’ve written in about five years. It’s also the first fanfic I've published, ever. Also, English is not my native language so I apologize in advance for any grammatical errors and awkward word choices. But if those things don’t scare you, then read away.

"Come on, sweetie, you can do it.” Adora murmured gently, hoping against hope that this time would be different.

And for a while it seemed like it might work. But then the baby in her arms started fussing again and eventually started crying. Adora wanted to do the same. It wasn’t working. She was a failure. She should have just given the baby up, just like everyone told her to. By this point the baby’s cries had turned into full on wailing and Adora felt the tears welling up in her eyes finally start to fall. 

Then a knock came at the door. Adora cradled the baby closer to her chest and stood up from the bed. Figures that even here they would bother others. She walked over to the door and gingerly reached out to open it. 

Outside the door stood a young woman. She had a long mane of unruly brown hair and heterochromatic eyes, one bright blue, one amber. She was dressed in a red, formfitting blouse with a - is that a boob-window?, Adora’s sleep-deprived brain provided unhelpfully - and black leggings. What she wasn’t wearing was a pair of socks, let alone shoes. The woman was absolutely breathtaking, despite - or perhaps because - of her unusual looks.

“Um, hello?” Adora snapped back to find a hand moving about an inch away from her face and the other woman staring at her, puzzled expression on her face. 

“Sorry, sorry!” Adora hurried to say, face flushing in embarrassment. “I totally blacked out there for a sec.”

The brunette laughed. “Yeah, I could tell. You not getting any sleep?”

Adora’s attention was brought back to the still screaming infant in her arms. She could feel her blush deepening. “I’m so sorry. I just can’t get her to quiet down. I’m really sorry, I-“

The woman held her hand up to cut Adora off. “No need to apologize, we’ve all been there. Does she have colic?”

Adora shook her head in misery. If only that were the case. Instead of her just being a crappy mother. “No. I, I just have trouble feeding her.” She admitted, ashamed. 

But the other woman didn’t give her the look of distaste Adora was so used to as of late. Instead, she took a step forward and turned to close the door behind her. “Can I?” She asked, reaching towards the baby in Adora’s arms.

Adora bit her lip, then nodded. She expected the woman to lift the infant from her arms but was surprised when instead she reached for Adora’s shirt. 

Adora had thought that her face couldn’t possibly flush any further but clearly she’d been wrong. Not only was the woman in front of her reaching out to touch Adora’s chest but she was also totally drop-dead gorgeous while Adora was painfully aware of the fact that she herself hadn’t showered in three days, was dressed in an old T-shirt covered in spit-up and looked, for all intents and purposes, like a complete disaster.

“My name’s Catra. What’s yours?” The woman said suddenly, pausing with her hand a few inches away from touching Adora.

“Adora” Adora mumbled, feeling relieved to find her voice at least relatively normal sounding. 

“Hey, Adora” said Catra, her voice like melted chocolate. “Nice to meet you. And this little one as well. What’s their name?”

Adora swallowed, then looked down at her baby. “I, she... She doesn’t have a name yet.”

If Catra was surprised by that, she didn’t show it. “Well then, let’s see if we can figure out why this little lady is so angry.”

Catra led Adora to the bed and motioned her to sit down. After that, she placed a pillow on Adora’s lap and gestured for Adora to place the baby on it. “Is it okay if I touch you?”

Adora swallowed, then nodded, not trusting her voice enough to speak. 

Catra reached out and lifted Adora’s shirt up, pulling it off. Adora felt her face heat up again as her breasts were exposed. But Catra seemed completely unconcerned. “So, what’s the biggest problem?”

Adora felt shame well up inside her once more. “She won’t latch on. I mean, she’ll try, but then she’ll just spit it out without even trying to suckle properly.”

She glanced down at her daughter, the baby’s face now completely red and her angry wails coming out in a hoarse sounding voice. She felt, not for the first time, like the world’s worst mother. 

Catra placed her hand gently on the baby’s smaller one. “Poor sweetheart. She must be exhausted. Hungry as a wolf but too tired to get to it.” Adora felt new tears well up. She knew she was a bad mother and now Catra knew it too.

“You know what might help?” Catra’s voice made Adora raise her eyes to look at Catra questioningly. “Milking”

Adora’s eyebrows rose. Milking? Like cows?

Catra grinned, like she could guess what Adora was thinking, and continued. “That’s when you, or someone else, massages the breast to help stimulate the flow of the milk.”

Adora had never heard of such a thing, but then again, she hadn’t really received much help when it came to breastfeeding. That was, other than 'Take your tit out, put baby up to it and repeat every few hours'. 

“Do you want to try that?” Catra asked, smiling softly at Adora. 

Adora nodded. It wasn’t like she had anything to lose.

“Are you comfortable with me doing it?” Catra asked, causing Adora’s eyes to widen and jump up to look into Catra’s eyes. “I mean, you could do it yourself, but it can be a little awkward, especially in the beginning and while holding a child that small.”

Adora bit her lip. She was well aware she looked like a mess and now this woman - who looked like she could be a model, by the way - was going to basically fondle her breast. Be it only for the least sexual reason in the world as it were or not, it was still embarrassing as heck. 

“Look, no pressure or anything.” Catra said and leaned back away from Adora. “We also have bottles and like, four different kinds of formula here. You can go pick any of them if you want, just remember to write it down on the grocery list if you open the last package of anything. And clean up the bottles after you use them.”

Adora felt conflicted. “But... Breastfeeding is best for a baby. Healthiest.”

Catra shrugged. “And getting at least seven hours of sleep every night is vital for health. Doesn’t mean that actually happens for anyone all the time. Look, recommendations are supposed to be there to help people, not to be used as something to hit others on the head with.”

Adora glanced down at her baby, then up at Catra. “Can we try it first? Then, if it doesn’t work, I’ll try the formula.”

Catra nodded, then scooted closer to Adora. “Sure. Lean your back against the wall. Good. Now, place her body on the pillow, a little further, yes, that’s good.”

Catra kept giving instructions and Adora followed, silently. Then, after a while Catra nodded one last time and told Adora to place her baby’s head against her nipple.

“Okay, I’m going to massage your breast. Then, when the milk starts to flow open her mouth and put it up against the nipple and have the milk drip into her mouth. The taste should help her latch on and the milk should come out easier after I’ve already gotten it running a bit.”

Adora could only nod. She was painfully aware of Catra reaching out and putting her hand on Adora’s breast. _Breathe. Just breathe, Adora. It’s just a woman touching your breast._ A really, really attractive woman, Adora’s brain provided unhelpfully.

Thankfully Catra didn’t seem to be aware of the crisis going on in Adora’s brain, or if she was, she was kind enough to not bring it up. 

When Adora saw tiny droplets of milk gathering on her nipple, she eased the baby’s mouth onto it. The baby’s cries stopped and Adora held her breath. For a while time seemed to stand still. Then the baby’s mouth moved and she started to weakly suckle on the nipple in her mouth. Adora could only watch in awe as the baby suckled for close to a minute before spitting the nipple out and starting crying again. 

“Turn her around,” Catra said, reaching for the other breast and starting her previous motions yet again.

They continued this way for - Adora didn’t even know how long a time - until finally the baby pulled away from her nipple but didn’t start to cry again.

Catra pulled back as well. “There we go. One full-bellied baby, at least for a few hours.”

Adora could hardly believe it. She simply stared at her daughter, unable to find any words. 

“You should burp her before she falls fully asleep.” Catra said and then got up from the bed. She turned and started to make her way towards the door.

It was then that Adora found her ability to speak again. “Thank you, Catra. I... that was... Thank you.”

Catra simply smiled at her, said “No problem,” and walked out of Adora’s room. 

Adora was left alone with a sleeping baby and a racing mind. 

———

The next morning Adora walked into the kitchen, her baby cradled in her arms. She had actually slept during the night. Not for very long, but still, longer than she had slept since she’d been released from the hospital. She’d fed her daughter three times during the night, each time trying to repeat what Catra had done. It hadn’t worked as well as when Catra had done it but it was still worlds better than any of her previous attempts.

“Good morning” Adora turned towards the voice and saw Huntara, the woman running the shelter, The Crimson Maternity Housing. The older woman was unpacking a large box and placing the contents into the various cupboards in the kitchen.

“Morning” Adora muttered softly and sat down at the table. 

“How are you settling in? Is there anything you need for your room?” Huntara inquired, all the while carrying on with refilling the shelves.

Adora bit her lip. She couldn’t understand why everyone was being so nice to her here. She was only causing trouble, she should have just let them take the baby like they’d wanted to at the hospital. She shouldn’t have been so selfish-

“Morning, Huntara. Is there coffee?” Came a familiar voice behind Adora and cut off her spiraling thoughts. 

“Good morning, Catra.” Huntara greeted the other woman, not once pausing in her chores. “There’s still a bit of coffee left from earlier in the morning but if you want it to be fresh you’ll have to make it yourself.”

Adora watched as Catra made her way to the coffee maker, picking up the pot and sniffing it. The brunette gave a wince and turned to dump the contents of the pot down the drain. She then turned around and started filling the coffee maker with fresh coffee grounds. 

“I have to run now.” Huntara had finally finished with unpacking the box and was now turning towards Adora. “We’ll talk more when I get back, make sure you’re settling in properly. If you need anything, you can just ask Catra or any of the other girls here. Perfuma will come in around noon, but if there’s any problems until then you can reach me on my cell.”

The woman pat Adora on the shoulder a few times, then left the room. 

Adora was left staring awkwardly at her lap and thinking whether it would be too obvious if she got up now and went back to her room. 

“So, she seems happier today than she was last night.” Catra sat down next to Adora, holding a steaming cup of black coffee in her hands.

Adora glanced down at her child. The baby was currently sleeping, her little eyelashes fluttering softly. She was so beautiful. Adora felt her chest constrict as she stared down at her baby. Her daughter. Her world.

“How old is she?” Catra continued, not seeming to mind the mostly one-sided nature of the conversation. 

“A week and three days.”

“Wow. She’s pretty big for her age. I do not envy you, labor must have been quite something.” Catra talked on, taking a sip of her coffee. “I made them give me all the medication possible and Roan was way smaller than that.”

Adora looked up at Catra. That was the first time the other woman had mentioned her own child. “Roan? Is that your...”

“My son” Catra said, nodding her head. “He’s nine months old now.”

Adora couldn’t help but wonder. She hadn’t seen the baby around, not this morning and not yesterday when Catra had come to her room. “Is he... I mean, where... Does he...?”

Catra threw her head back, laughing. “Wow, you have a real way with words, don't you. It’s his morning nap time. He’s sleeping next door, with Dylan.”

“Is he your child too?” Adora questioned, trying to be more involved in the conversation.

“Oh, yes. I have four, you see.”

Adora felt her eyes widen. Four? Four children? Catra couldn’t be any older than she was. How was it possible that she already had four children?

Catra burst into laughter, tears gathering at the corners of her eyes. “God, you should have seen your face. I’m kidding!” She wiped her eyes and chuckled. “Oh, man, I haven’t laughed this hard in ages.”

Adora had yet to make up her mind whether she should feel insulted by what had just happened when Catra continued. “Dylan is Mermista’s son. He’s seven months old and shares the same sleeping pattern as Roan. Mermista and I have a pact, she looks after them during their morning nap and I get free time. The I look after them during their afternoon nap time and she gets free time.”

Adora nodded. That sounded smart. It would be nice to get to have some time just for herself. Maybe take a shower.

“So, is Roan your only child or...” Adora asked, still not quite sure what to make of the other woman and her... humor?

Catra snorted. “Yes, I have just the one. Please and thank you. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I love Roan but he's certainly a handful.”

Adora could relate to that.

“Have you met Mermista yet?” Adora turned to look at Catra again, surprised by the sudden change of subject.

“No, not yet. I arrived late yesterday evening and went straight to my room. You’re the first one I’ve seen, other than Huntara.”

“Okay, so let me get you up to date.” Catra took a long slurp of her coffee, then placed the cup on the table. “There's four of us living here right now. Well, five now that you’re here. There's Lonnie and her daughter, Alana, Natalia and her son, Jordan, and then there’s Mermista and Seahawk and their son, Dylan.”

"Wait, did you say ‘their son'? As in, both of theirs?"

Catra nodded. “Yep. Mermista and Seahawk are a couple."

Adora couldn’t help but be amazed. "And they can both live here, like together?”

“Yep.” Catra said, popping the p, her voice nonchalant like she was talking about the weather. “Why’d you ask that? Got yourself a Prince Charming just waiting around the corner to be asked in?”

Adora blanched. She could tell by Catra's voice that the other woman was just joking, but she still couldn’t help her reaction. 

“No. Definitely not.” Adora gazed down at her daughter and pulled her a little closer to her chest.

"Hey” Catra's voice suddenly came closer than it had before. "I'm sorry if that’s a sensitive subject. And hey, if it’s any consolation, I don’t have a guy in my life either. Neither do Lonnie or Natalia. In fact, the thing with Mermista and Seahawk is really rare. She’s really lucky to have him. Even if he is kind of a doofus and has the worst singing voice in the entire world."

Adora tried to crack a smile, though she didn’t know how successful it was. Based on the look on Catra’s face, apparently not very.

"Well, anyway. Roan's nap time is almost done, so I have to go.” Catra stood up, stretched and took her coffee cup to the sink to rinse it. "See you around during dinner time, I guess. Though I warn you, with five kids under the age of two it can be quite something."

And for the second time in less than twelve hours, Adora was left staring after Catra as the other woman walked away, leaving her no less confused than before.

———

After a week at the shelter Adora still felt like she was drowning. She fed her daughter - to the best of her ability -, burped her, changed her, put her to sleep, then tried to get some sleep herself before waking up and doing it all over again. And again and again and again. 

She was trying, she honestly was, but it never felt like it was enough. Like she was enough. 

Don’t get her wrong, Adora knew she was lucky. Most shelters only accepted mothers who were under eighteen, let you stay for a couple months at most or required you to pay in order to stay. Not only did Huntara accept young mothers - and apparently also fathers - of any age, she let them stay for as long as they needed and she didn’t even ask for any money in return. The only thing that was required of them was that they all take part in the cooking and cleaning around the place.

Adora knew she should be grateful, and she was. She just, she couldn’t help but also feel like she was taking advantage of Huntara’s kindness. And that’s why she was trying her hardest to help out around the shelter in any way she could. Currently she was mopping the hallway, her baby nestled in a sling around her chest.

“What do you _mean_?!” Came a screaming voice from deeper inside the house. Adora turned around and saw Mermista approaching, Seahawk walking behind her, carrying Dylan in his arms.

“All I’m saying is, not all babies appreciate you screeching into their ears as they try to fall asleep.” Mermista stated bluntly. 

“But, but, I was only trying to help. You know Dylan falls asleep in a flash when I sing to him.”

Mermista rolled her eyes. “Did you ever think that perhaps Dylan falls asleep so quickly just so he doesn’t have to listen to your voice anymore?”

Seahawk gave a shocked gasp. “How dare you! Dylan, you love daddy’s singing, don’t you?”

The young boy gurgled, causing Mermista to roll her eyes yet again, but before she could say anything her gaze fell on Adora. “Adora, hi!”

Adora turned her full attention on the other woman. Mermista was wearing a turquoise tunic and dark blue leggings, her dark hair in a long braid and her makeup looking impeccable. She looked amazing, like always. Adora felt like a slob next to her, with her faded red T-shirt and black sweatpants, her hair in a messy ponytail and with no makeup on.

“Oh, hello Mermista, Seahawk.” Adora placed the mop against the wall and turned towards the pair. “Is everything okay, can I help you with anything?”

Mermista gave Adora a puzzled look and the blonde woman felt herself flushing. “Was today your turn to clean the floors? I thought I saw you doing it earlier this week already.”

“Uh, no. I just... felt like doing something useful.” Adora mumbled, avoiding the other woman‘s eyes. 

Mermista rolled groaned. “Do you, like, ever just stay still?”

Adora fidgeted around, feeling self conscious. 

“Well, that answers my question.” Mermista stated and Adora felt herself blush. “You do know that there are people, like, working here, right? So, you don’t have to, like, do everything, all the time.”

Adora bit her lip, not really knowing what to say.

Mermista sighed. “Fine, do whatever you want.” Then the woman walked towards Seahawk, took a hold of the man’s hand and retreated into their room, leaving Adora standing awkwardly in the hallway.

She wasn’t quite sure what had just happened, but somehow she felt like she’d messed up. She just wasn’t sure how.

Adora picked up the mop yet again and continued cleaning the floor. If she just kept herself busy, then she could keep herself from thinking. 

———

“Okay, I’m taking you out.”

Adora turned around away from the desktop where she was chopping vegetables for today’s dinner to look at the woman standing by the kitchen door. “What?”

Catra walked into the kitchen and grabbed a hold of Adora’s hand. “What I just said; I’m taking you out.”

Adora blinked. “But, I can’t... Who’ll finish the dinner?”

Catra rolled her eyes. “Who cares! Adora, you don’t work here. And you don’t have to look after everyone.”

“But-“

“No buts!” Catra’s hold on Adora’s hand tightened and she started pulling the blonde after her. 

Adora mumbled and muttered, but let herself be pulled out of the kitchen by the other woman. “Where are we going?”

“You’ll find out eventually.” Catra evaded the question, leading Adora to the blonde’s room. “Put on your jacket and shoes. And for the little one, too.”

Adora tried again to question where they’d be going but when she realized Catra wasn’t going to tell her anything she huffed, put on her outerwear and did the same for her baby. 

“Good. Now follow me.” Catra turned on her heels and Adora was helpless to do anything but follow. The brunette led them out to the small park behind the shelter. The two women sat down at the park table, facing each other. 

“So, what are we doing here?” Adora finally broke the silence. 

“You really need to constantly be doing something, don’t you?” Catra chuckled and ran her fingers through her hair. 

Adora shrugged. “I just want to be useful.”

“For what?” Catra scoffed. “Natalia has been here for almost two years and she still shows no intention of even planning to leave. But still, Huntara is fine with that. Do you really think she’d have a problem with you taking a little time for yourself?”

“It’s not that, I know she wouldn’t mind. She’s told me enough times already.”

“Then why don’t you?” Catra pressed on. 

Adora bit her lip. “I... I don’t want to be a burden.” Catra’s face softened.

“You could never be a burden. Do you realize you’ve been at Huntara’s for less than three weeks and you’ve already taken over almost half of the chores. And you have a month old baby to boot. Adora, if anything you make the rest of us look bad.”

Adora frowned. She didn’t want to make the other women feel like that. She just wanted to be useful and make sure she wasn’t being a burden for Huntara. 

“Aaand now you’re upset.” Catra said. “Let me guess. You’re upset that you doing so much is reflecting badly onto us?”

Adora’s silence spoke volumes and Catra shook her head and sighed. “God, you’re such a goody-two-shoes.”

At that moment Adora‘s baby chose to wake up, and let the people around her know that she was up by letting out wails that were pretty impressive for a baby her size.

Adora immediately started to pull the infant out of the sling and then unbutton her jacket. 

“So, how’s the feeding being going?” 

Adora felt a blush rise on her face. “It’s okay, I guess. Better than before. What you showed me really helped; I’ve been using that tactic a lot.” She rid herself of all the clothing she could get away with at the public park and then placed the baby against her breast. The little one attacked the nipple like it was a foe in need of conquering and Adora winced.

“Did you know Lonnie couldn’t breastfeed?” Adora turned to look at Catra, unsure why the other woman was bringing that up. 

“Yeah, turns out she has this conditioning that makes it impossible for her to breastfeed. Thankfully there’s always more than enough formula at Crimson. There’s also lots of different kinds of formula; I found out the hard way that Roan can’t have any of the regular ones, only soy based ones. But now that we know, Huntara always makes sure we have all the different kinds in stock all the time.”

Catra continued talking about mundane things to do with the shelter, the other women there and their babies, the people working there, and such as Adora fed her child. Eventually the baby decided that she was full and Adora moved on to burping her. 

“You girls look awfully young to be having a baby,” came a curt voice from behind them.

Adora hurriedly covered herself and turned to look at the person who’d spoken to them. 

“Yeah, well you can just keep your opinions to yourself.” Catra said, her voice like barbed wire. 

The older woman next to them let out a shocked gasp and clutched her purse to her chest. “I beg your pardon.”

“You heard me.” Catra said, standing up from the table and facing the older woman.

“How dare you! I, I am simply worried for the poor impressionable young children. I told the neighborhood council that nothing good would come out of letting that woman open a shelter around here. And I was right. What kind of lives will those children have, growing up around people like you. With unwed mothers, not even having fathers around.”

Adora felt ice spreading around her chest. The woman was right. What kind of life could she give child. Who was she to be selfish and rob her daughter the chance to have a real family; a father, a mother who was worth something. 

Adora jumped up from the table, hearing Catra first yelling at the woman, then calling after Adora as the blonde ran away. But she couldn’t stop. She felt like she couldn’t even breathe, but she knew she had to get away from there. And so she clutched her baby to her chest and ran. 

———

Adora burst into her room. She didn’t know how she'd made it back here, couldn’t remember anything about the way back. All she knew was that she couldn’t stay any longer. She felt tears gathering in her eyes, felt her lungs burning, felt like her chest was about to collapse.

With trembling hands she placed her baby on the bed. Thankfully the little one hadn’t seemed to be bothered by her running like a crazy person and was now sleeping peacefully. Who had she been kidding, who was she to think she had what it took to raise a child. She didn’t know anything about being a parent.

Sobbing, Adora walked up to the closet in the corner of the room and started stuffing her clothes into her backpack. At the same time she was also making a mental list of all the things she needed to do. She'd have to talk to Huntara, thank her for letting her stay, giving her the opportunity and apologize for not being good enough. And if Huntara was willing, Adora would ask her for one more favor. She glanced at her baby, feeling like the whole world was falling apart.

She couldn’t be the one to hand her over, she wasn’t strong enough. Even now, just thinking about it had all her instincts screaming at her to just pick the baby up and never let go. But she couldn’t do it, she couldn’t be selfish. At least, no more than she had already been. She'd gotten to spend a month with her daughter, that would be enough. She would carry the memory of that time with her for the rest of her life and it would have to be enough.

“What are you doing?" Adora turned around and saw Catra standing in the doorway, staring at her. 

“I, I have to go." Adora answered, then turned back towards the closet, throwing the last of her clothes into her backpack and closing the zipper. 

"Go where?"

"I don’t know," Adora admitted in a quiet voice. 

Catra scoffed. "Well that’s a great plan. Leaving with a month-old baby, with no money and no idea where you’re going."

Something on Adora's face must have given away the truth, because Catra’s eyes hardened and she crossed her arms. "Are you serious?! You were actually going to leave without her."

Adora bit her lip and looked away.

"Wow. I can’t believe it. Of all the girls I’ve met here, you'd be the last one I'd ever believed could do this. I can’t believe you're just going to take the easy way out."

Those words pierced through all her pain and Adora saw red. "Easy? You think it’s easy? It will be the hardest thing I'll ever have to do."

"Then why do it?"

"Because of her! I'm doing it for her, for her future." Adora screamed. 

"Oh c'mon!" Catra yelled and threw her hands in the air. "You’re not seriously listening to what that crazy lady in the park said? She knows nothing. She thinks she's so much better than others just because she has money or status or whatever."

Adora felt tears gathering in her eyes and she took a step closer to Catra. "But she was right. What kind of a life can I give her? I don’t have any money, I don’t have an education or a job. I can’t give her what she deserves; I can’t give her a real home."

"Is that what you think of the rest of us, too?" Catra said quietly, a vulnerable expression on her face.

Adora gasped. "No! I didn’t mean-"

"Why did you keep her, if that’s the way you feel? Why didn’t you just give her away in the first place?” Catra cut Adora off, her voice colder than Adora had ever heard it be before.

"I..." Adora started. "I didn’t want her to feel abandoned, like she wasn’t wanted."

Catra simply stared at Adora.

"I was abandoned," Adora finally said, wringing her hands. She was already so deep she might just as well tell the full story. "I was found in an alley when I was only a couple days old. I know I wasn’t wanted; I’d never want her to feel the same."

Catra gave Adora an unbelieving look. "So you expect me to believe that you, a pretty, white blonde baby girl didn’t get snatched up by prospective adoptive parents right away?"

"I had health problems," Adora told her. "I was in and out of hospitals for the first twelve years of my life. For the first four years they weren’t even sure I was going to make it, so I wasn’t considered suitable for adoption. By the time I got better, I was already too old to be wanted by anyone."

“Okay so you had crappy luck. But she’s healthy.” Catra turned her attention to the baby, who was thankfully still fast asleep on Adora’s bed, despite the way they’d raised their voices talking to each other. “Who knows, she could get adopted by a filthy rich couple who would spoil her rotten. She could have all the things you never had.”

Adora drew in a shuddering breath. Catra wasn’t saying anything that she herself hadn’t already said; why did it sound so much harder when coming from someone else?

“What’s her name?”

Adora turned to Catra, eyes wide. “I... she-“

“Don’t say she doesn’t have a name.” Catra cut Adora off. “I’ve seen the way you look at her, how you take care of her. You love that baby more than life itself. So I know you call her something. Maybe not out loud, maybe you won’t even admit it to yourself, but I know somewhere in your heart you‘ve given her a name.”

Silent tears fell on Adora’s face as she turned to look at her daughter. For a while neither woman said a word.

“Mara” Adora finally said, her voice wavering. “Her name is Mara.”

“Adora” Catra called, her voice once again gentle. The brunette walked up to Adora and lay her hand on Adora’s arm. “What about you? What do you want?”

Adora could only stare at the other woman. Catra smiled at her softly, then removed her hand. “You don’t have to answer me. But just think about it.”

Without another word, the brunette turned around and walked out of Adora’s room. Adora felt her legs give out and she collapsed on the floor.

What she wanted... Did it truly matter? Could she really choose to do as she wanted to?

Her head felt heavy, like it was filled with lead. She laid down on the floor, closing her eyes. Just for a while. She could rest for a bit and then...

———

Adora woke up with a start. Her body was stiff, giving away the fact that she’d slept for much longer than she’d intended. How long had she been asleep? She hadn’t woken up by her baby crying, so it couldn’t be that long; Mara always woke up every couple of hours to feed.

Adora turned to look at the bed where she’d last laid Mara down to sleep. Her heart missed a beat when she realized the bed was empty. Adora clambered onto her feet and ran up to the bed. She frantically searched under the covers, around the bed, under the bed. But Mara was nowhere to be found.

What could have happened? A baby that young couldn’t move on their own, so someone must have come and took her. But who and why? Had somebody heard her talk about leaving Mara and decided to take matters into their own hands? What if Mara was already gone, given to the social services and she would never see her again. Wouldn’t even be able to say goodbye. 

Adora ran from her room, she had to talk to Huntara, find out what the older woman knew. As Adora was passing by the common area on her way to Huntara's office, she saw Catra sitting in one of the loveseats. She changed her course, making her way to the brunette, wanting to find out what she’d told the others. As Adora got closer, she realized Catra's top was unbuttoned and she had a small child suckling at her breast. Way too small for it to be Catra’s son, Roan. With a start she realized who the baby was.

The first feeling Adora felt was pure relief coursing through her veins, however it soon turned into anger. "How could you!" Adora called out, startling Catra who had yet to notice her. 

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me! How could you just take Mara like that. While I was asleep! Do you have any idea how scared I was when I woke up and she wasn’t there."

Catra’s eyes widened. "I was only trying to help. I heard Mara crying and when I got to your room I saw you fast asleep on the floor. You looked like you really needed the rest, so I thought I'd take Mara and look after her while you slept."

Adora had calmed down a little, seeing her daughter was fine, but she was still upset. "I appreciate the gesture but you can’t just do that without telling me."

"Pretty difficult to tell a sleeping person," Catra pointed out. "But I did leave a note."

Adora opened her mouth to give a frustrated comeback, but then closed it. Had there been a note? She couldn’t remember. After all, she had had other things on her mind, so she hadn’t been paying attention to anything that wasn’t her missing daughter.

"Oh" she finally mustered out. "I didn’t see it. I’m sorry I yelled at you."

Catra looked at her with a sympathetic expression. "No, I’m sorry. I should have realized you would panic when you saw Mara wasn’t there. I should have just stayed in your room. I only wanted to give you the chance to sleep but I really didn’t think this through, did I?"

Adora sat in the loveseat next to the one Catra was sitting in, her legs feeling like jelly now that the adrenaline was leaving her body.

"I can’t do it." Adora whispered, the truth finally sinking in. 

"What?" Catra asked, "Sorry, I couldn’t hear you."

"I can’t give Mara up. I can’t do it; it would kill me."

Catra gave Adora a small smile. "I know." Then the brunette lifted Mara away from her chest and placed the baby in Adora's arms. "Sorry that I nursed her without asking you first. She was hungry and I know you’re uncomfortable with formula, so I figured this was the best way."

Adora raised Mara up to her shoulder to burp the baby. "It’s okay, I trust you. I know you still feed Roan too, so you wouldn’t do anything that would make your milk dangerous for him."

Catra buttoned up her shirt, then rose up from the loveseat. "I have to go, it’s my cooking shift today. See you at lunch?"

Adora nodded in agreement and then focused all her attention on the baby in her arms. That’s why she failed to see Catra linger in the doorway for a while, simply watching fondly as the mother and daughter bonded. She was glad Adora had decided to stay. Somehow, it felt like the beginning of something new, for all of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I get that this is technically pre-Catradora, rather than actual romantic Catradora. I do see it evolving into an actual relationship in the future, however. There is also a reason for them having biological children despite them both being lesbians in this universe also. Maybe I'll get around to writing all that at some point.  
> I also have an idea for a future installment where Bow and Glimmer make an appearance. I originally wanted to include them here, but it didn’t make sense to me for them to wind up at a shelter; their parents are way too loving to allow that.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who read the first part, and especially to everyone who took the time to leave a comment. I'm truly humbled. 
> 
> Warning, this part features discussion of previous off-screen sexual assault so tread with caution.

Adora had been at The Crimson Maternity Housing for five months and she was, at least in her own opinion, doing much better. She only helped prepare dinner every third day, instead of every day as in the beginning, and she had also agreed to only clean on the days she was scheduled to do it. Catra had rolled her eyes and muttered, "Oh yes, you are turning into a real layabout," when Adora had told the brunette this, but the fond look in her eyes let Adora know she wasn’t serious. 

Adora had also gotten to know the others staying at the shelter better. She had learned that Lonnie liked to play the guitar and was really good at martial arts. Adora would occasionally help Lonnie practice and she had learned to enjoy the way it helped empty her mind. She had learned that Natalia had a real artistic streak and wanted to make her own clothing line in the future. Adora didn’t really share Natalia's interest in art but she was glad the other woman seemed to be making an effort to pursue her passion.

She had learned that Mermista loved to read and that she had a surprisingly good singing voice when you managed to convince her to use it. Adora especially liked listening to Mermista talk about this mystery novel series she loved; Adora herself wasn’t much of a reader but hearing Mermista explaining the intricacies of each plot point was like being part of the story herself. She had learned that Seahawk was actually really good at math and that the man was studying business management at the local community college. Never having even graduated from high school herself Adora couldn’t help but be impressed by the man's commitment to making a better life for his family.

All in all Adora had become fond of her new companions. That’s why she’d been sad when Mermista and Seahawk had gotten an apartment of their own last month, Seahawk's new work placement paying enough for them to take that first step towards independence. Thankfully the apartment was close enough that they could all still meet at the park some days and let the children play together. Or more accurately, Roan and Dylan - and Alana and Jordan, if Lonnie and Natalia also joined them - played together while Mara mostly slept.

So yes, for the first time in a long time Adora felt content. Which should have been her first clue that something was bound to go wrong.

"Hey, did you guys see the headlines?" Lonnie asked one morning when they were sitting in the kitchen having breakfast.

"Are you talking about the guy who got convicted?" Natalia asked back, painting her nails and at the same time trying to stop her son Jordan from throwing his porridge onto the floor.

Lonnie nodded. "Yeah. Apparently he would offer girls - mostly young, homeless ones - a place stay the night and then take advantage of them."

"Real gentleman," Catra muttered darkly.

"Yep, a total douchebag," Natalia added. "I get chills just thinking about it."

Adora had felt ice spread through her body the moment the conversation had started. By now she was struggling to breathe, but was trying to act natural so as to not raise attention to herself.

"Adora, could you come help me with something in my room, please?" Adora turned around to see Huntara looking at her from across the kitchen.

"Uh, yeah, sure," Adora nodded and stumbled to get up.

"Catra, can you watch Mara for a while?" Huntara asked, receiving a nod from the brunette. "Thanks."

Huntara led Adora to her office, then gestured for the blonde to sit down. "First of all, I want you to know that anything we talk about here is 100 percent confidential."

She saw Adora’s hands clench into fists, but otherwise the younger woman didn’t react. Huntara had hoped her intuition had been wrong, but by now it was clear that these were not the reactions of someone simply being upset by a piece of news. 

"Adora, you are safe here, okay," Huntara said, trying her best to keep her voice as gentle as possible. She wished with all her might that Perfuma was here but unfortunately the other woman had today off. Huntara was so out of her depth here; she was the muscle, the leader. She could easily carry heavy loads of groceries or face off the city officials who had a problem with her girls, but this, this was different. However, she knew this was not about her right now, so she had to pull herself together.

"Have you... have you talked about this with anyone?" She finally decided to ask.

Adora’s eyes widened. "No, please, you can’t tell anyone!"

"I’m not going to do anything you don’t want me to, okay." Huntara said soothingly. "I just want you to know that we’re all here for you. And nobody in here is going to judge you for anything."

Adora sniffled softly. "But I was so stupid. Nobody just happens to hang around group homes, waiting to offer shelter to kids who age out of the system out of the goodness of their heart. I obviously had it coming."

"Nonsense," Huntara replied. "The victim is never to blame in these situations."

Huntara could see that Adora was having a hard time believing her. She felt angry, like she could strangle somebody. How dare somebody do something like that to this wonderful, gentle young woman, a girl really, at least when compared to her.

"I'd really like it if you could at least consider talking to Perfuma." Huntara said, finally realizing that Adora wasn’t going to say anything. "It doesn’t have to be about anything in particular. But Perfuma is good listener and she’s had some training. She’s also really good with meditation and uh, auras and such."

Adora nodded slightly, still not raising her eyes from her lap.

Huntara cleared her throat awkwardly and patted Adora on the shoulder. "Take care, now. And if you ever need anything remember that we’re all here for you."

Adora tried to smile at the older woman and then made her way out of the office and to her room.

*****

Adora lay on her bed, her face buried in the pillows. She had hoped that this was all behind her. She had wanted so hard to just forget all about it. To pretend like it had never even happened. Figures that would be too much to ask for. 

Adora heard the door opening but she didn’t react, hoping the person would just go away.

"Mara missed her mommy," came Catra’s voice from beside the bed. And as if to prove the woman's statement, Mara gurgled happily.

Adora forced herself to sit up and face the brunette and the baby in her arms. She reached for her daughter and Catra handed the baby over to Adora.

"Are you okay?" Catra asked, her voice was soothing, but the way she looked at Adora was filled with concern. 

Adora nodded. She rocked Mara gently in her arms, pondering how much she wanted to share with Catra. "I was one of them," she finally said.

Catra’s expression remained unchanged, but Adora could see her body stiffening, her hands clenching into fists. "Did you... Were you one of the witnesses?"

Adora shook her head. "I just wanted to forget about it, I never told anyone. And then when I found out I was... Then I _knew_ I couldn’t tell anyone." She took a deep breath, then turned to look Catra in the eye and continued. "I know how these things go, I've heard about courts granting visitation rights or even partial custody to people like that. I swore to myself that I would never tell anyone, that I would do whatever it took to protect Mara."

Catra sidled closer to Adora and slowly, so as to give the blonde the chance to pull away, reached out to place an arm around her. 

Adora bit back a sob. She felt so overwhelmed. Why was Catra being so nice to her, still.

"Did you know there's going to be a fair next week?" Catra told, pulling Adora closer towards her body. "We could go there together, all of us. There’s apparently going to be live music and cotton candy and balloon animals..."

Catra continued talking about mundane things and slowly Adora felt her eyes closing and she fell asleep. Surprisingly, she didn’t remember having nightmares, only feeling safe and warm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next part includes Bow and Glimmer and is also a whole bunch happier.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said last time that the next chapter would include Bow and Glimmer, however somehow I hadn’t taken into consideration the fact that we absolutely had to see Catra, Adora and co. go to the fair. Thank you to AvatarAbby for pointing that out. This chapter wasn’t originally part of the story in my mind, but when I started writing it, it basically wrote itself.
> 
> So, we will get to meet Bow and Glimmer in the chapter after this one. It should be posted sometime this week.

“Ugh, I _can’t believe_ you made me come to a community fair.”

Catra gave Mermista a pointed look. “Nobody forced you to join us, you know.”

Mermista rolled her eyes. “Like I’d let Seahawk come out here by himself. He would probably wind up bringing half the circus home with him.”

Catra turned to look to her left where the man in question was gawking at a group of clowns tossing bowling pins. As she was looking his way, she saw Seahawk attempt to copy the clowns and ended up toppling over one of the small tents near him. “Yeah okay, I understand what you mean.”

“Girls, let’s remember to focus on the positive; it’s a beautiful day and we’re lucky to be enjoying it with each other.” Came a soft and gentle voice behind them.

Catra grinned at the woman who had spoken. “But Perfuma, I _was_ being positive. After all, isn’t it good that Mermista is making sure her baby still has a father come evening.”

Perfuma’s eye twitched and Mermista let out a chuckle she tried to cover with a cough before quickly busying herself with turning her attention to the two children strapped to a baby stroller next to the group.

The slight tension was broken by the appearance of a tall, muscular woman with short pale hair carrying a giggling little girl in her arms. “Oh wow, kids sure are fast. I turned my head away for a second and she’d just run off.”

A fond smile made its way to Perfuma’s face as she turned towards her wife and daughter. “I did suggest using a safety harness and leash. You know how excited Flora gets when we take her out to places like this.”

Scorpia frowned, pulling the little girl closer to her chest. “It just seems so wrong to tie your child up like a dog.”

Perfuma rose up on her tiptoes and gave a peck onto her wife‘s cheek. “Which means we’ll just have to keep a really close eye on her.”

Catra turned away from the pair. They were cute together and it was nice to see a loving couple and all, but sometimes it could get a bit too much. As she did, her eyes fell on Adora. The woman was standing next to one of the stalls, lifting Mara up and showing the little girl the colorful stuffed animals on display. Mara, at not even quite six months old, was still a little too young to fully understand and appreciate all what was going on but was regardless picking up on her mother’s enthusiasm and enjoying that.

“Why don’t you go join Adora,” Perfuma‘s voice came from right behind Catra, making the brunette jump.

Catra schooled her expression before turning to look at the older woman. “You eager to get rid of me or something?” She was thankful Mermista and Scorpia had moved further away by now, taking the children to look at something-or-another.

Perfuma looked at Catra with that annoyingly understanding look of hers. “She could really use a friend, you know. And I think that so could you. You two could be really good for each other, if you just gave it the chance.”

Catra scoffed. “You’d be the first to think that I was good influence on anyone. Least of all someone goody-goody like her.”

“Catra,” Perfuma reprimanded, her voice turning a little harder but still kind. “Remember what we’ve talked about. You need to speak to yourself with more kindness. You cannot allow your self-worth to be ruled by your stepmother.”

Catra grimaced. “Ugh, don’t turn this outing into a therapy session, please.” She then turned towards where Adora was standing. “I’m going, okay. See, I’m going.”

She could feel Perfuma’s beaming smile on her back the entire way over to Adora. As she reached the other woman she could feel her confidence fading. It had been her idea to come to the fair in the first place and Adora had been really exited about it. But ever since they’d arrived here Adora had wandered off and not seemed interested in wanting to spend time with her. Maybe Perfuma was wrong, maybe Adora only tolerated her because she had no one else to hang out with. 

Before Catra could have the time to change her mind Adora noticed her. The blonde’s eyes lit up and she gestured for Catra to come over.

Catra walked up to Adora, letting a playful smirk rise onto her face. “Hi there, stranger.”

Adora smiled her usual - amazing, wonderful, beautiful, infuriating - smile and Catra could feel herself answering to it without intending to. “Hi! I was wondering where you went.”

Catra chose to not point out that it was Adora who had wandered off, choosing instead to focus on the positive, as Perfuma had told her to. “So, how are you enjoying the fair?”

“Oh, we are just loving it, aren’t we, Mara?” Adora bounced her daughter up and down, causing the baby to let out a loud laugh.

“Awesome, so is there anything else you want to see now that we’re here?”

Adora knit her brows. “I don’t know, I can’t really think of anything in particular.”

“Well,” Catra smiled slightly, “seeing as you’ve spent a significant amount of time staring at these stuffed animals, how about we try to win you one?”

The look Adora gave her was one of pure puzzlement. “For me?”

Catra shrugged. “Sure, why not.” She then turned to the person manning the stall. “So, how does this thing work?”

After receiving the instructions - manage to hit at least one of the pegs with a ring, easy - Catra paid for one round and got started. The first ring bounced off a peg, the balance being a little off. The second, however, Catra managed to get directly onto one of the pegs. She took a short break, taking a deep breath and focusing her attention solely on the task at hand. The third ring flew through the air, hitting the center peg in perfect accuracy and falling into place. 

Adora cheered loudly, causing Mara to join in with little squeals of her own after a moment’s confusion. “Yay, go Catra!”

The brunette blushed slightly, hurrying to go gather her price to put a little distance between herself and the blonde. She couldn’t understand why Adora affected her so strongly. She had slept with a relatively large number of people, both men and women, but none of them had affected her like this. _Maybe it’s just because it’s been so long since the last time_ , Catra thought. _Maybe I just need to get laid, get it out of my system._

The person manning the stall handed Catra a medium sized white unicorn with orange mane and tail and rainbow wings. Frankly, it looked ridiculous. But as Catra handed the toy to Adora, the blonde looked absolutely ecstatic.

Catra‘s heart gave a lurch. No, she didn’t think sleeping with other people would help her with this. Besides, she doesn’t want to do it anymore. She’d mostly done it to piss off her “purity-is-a-woman’s-greatest-asset” toting stepmother in the first place. And look where that had gotten her, pregnant at seventeen and thrown out of her home. But then again, when she looks at Roan, playing with Dylan under the watchful eyes of Mermista and Seahawk, and Adora, cooing at Mara as she shows the dumb unicorn plushy off to the girl, she thinks to herself that maybe she is right where she is meant to be.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Firstly, I want to take the time to thank everyone who read this story and left Kudos or a comment. Your support blew me away, never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that so many people would like what I wrote. 
> 
> This whole thing originally started out as just a couple of scenes from the first chapter that one day just appeared in my mind and that I couldn’t get out of my head. So I decided to write them down and then eventually it grew into the story you see here.

Summer had always been Adora's favorite time of the year. As a child she never got to join the other children running around in the sun and having fun, being forced to simply content herself with watching them out of the window of her hospital room. Which is why she enjoyed it all the more now when she got to watch her child be able to do all the things she never had. At the present, Mara was chasing Roan around the playground, laughing gleefully. The boy, being almost a year older than her, was much faster but Mara didn’t seem to mind, seemingly enjoying the chase regardless.

"Which one is yours?" Adora heard a voice behind her and turned around. The speaker was a young woman, short and slightly chubby with short pink-and-purple hair.

"Um, the small brown-haired girl chasing the dark-haired boy," Adora answered, motioning towards Mara and Roan. "And also kind of the boy, too. He’s my girlfriend's son."

"Oh, cool," the pink-haired woman said. "Mine’s the one eating sand at the sandbox." At this she rolled her eyes, shaking her head fondly.

Adora laughed softly. "Ouch, I do not miss that age." She reached her hand towards the other woman. "I'm Adora."

"Glimmer" the woman said, shaking Adora's hand. "I'm unfortunately not going to be rid of that age any time soon." Glimmer added to her statement by placing a hand on her stomach, which Adora then noticed bore the signs of pregnancy.

"Congratulations," Adora said. "Is that your second one?"

"And third," Glimmer sighed. "I should have known this would happen. After all, I did marry a man with twelve siblings."

Adora's eyes widened. She and Catra had talked about perhaps one day having one more child, but that was not currently in the plans. Just having a five-year-old and a four-year-old felt like enough of a handful for the two of them. She could not imagine having a toddler and two infants to boot. 

"Neither can I!" Cried Glimmer, placing her head in her hands. _Oops,_ Adora thought. _Apparently I said that out loud._ "And can you believe what my husband said when we found out? ‘We got doubly-blessed.' Doubly-blessed my ass; I don’t think my body will ever get back to normal after this! Not to mention my sanity; I haven’t slept a full night in almost two years!"

Adora wasn’t really sure what to say to that, but thankfully she was saved by Roan and Mara making their way to her. 

"Mom, I’m thirsty!" Mara announced loudly. "I ran super fast, did you see?"

"Me, too!" Roan added, not wanting to be outdone by the girl. "I ran faster than Mara; she only caught me once."

Adora quickly pulled out two juice boxes and handed them over to the children to stop their competition before it could fully begin. They were at the age where everything had to be a contest and they both wanted validation that they did better than the other. She and Catra had worked hard to try and explain that they could both be winners but apparently that wasn’t an acceptable answer to four and five-year-olds.

"So, mama is going to be coming home from work soon. What do you say we go and get dinner ready for her?" Adora asked, taking the now empty juice boxes back from the children and putting them into her backpack to be thrown into trash later.

"But mom," both kids moaned, "we still wanted to play."

"We can come back tomorrow, okay." Adora explained. "Think of how happy your mama will be when she comes home to find food ready and waiting at the table."

The children grumbled, but accepted the situation without further complaints. Adora turned to Glimmer who had sat quietly throughout the exchange. "It was nice to meet you."

"You too," the pink-haired woman said. "Perhaps we’ll see each other here again. We just moved here from Brightmoon; it would be nice to get to know other couples with children."

"Well, me and the kids come here almost every afternoon, so I'm sure we’ll be seeing each other again." Adora told. "Oh, and on Sundays we meet here with a group of other families; you and your husband should come too if you have the time."

Glimmer's face brightened at that and the woman gave Adora a wide smile. "That would be great."

"Well, we’ll see each other then," Adora waved Glimmer goodbye, taking a hold of each child's hand and starting to make her way home.

******

After leaving Crimson, Catra and Adora had originally decided to get an apartment together because it would be cheaper. Also, that way they could help each other with the children, especially when it came to one or both of them looking for work. But when people learned that they were living together, they often assumed that they were one family. At first the women would get embarrassed and try to correct the error but after a while it just seemed easier to simply let people keep their assumptions. And after some time, those assumptions were no longer just that.

It was actually kind of anticlimactic how they got together. They had once again been mistaken for a couple and Catra had jokingly said that perhaps they should just get together if that was what everybody thought anyway. Adora in turn had been flabbergasted, asking Catra that wasn’t she supposed to be straight. Catra had laughed so hard she could barely stay standing. "What ever gave you the idea that I was straight?" Adora had blushed, then pointed out that Catra had mentioned having had previous relations with men -“Yes, well I did a lot of stupid things as a teenager, Adora”-, and besides, she had never insinuated that she was anything other than straight, let alone into her _that way_.

"I thought it was implied!" Catra had howled out between hysterical bursts of laughter. "I mean _c'mon_ Adora, I had my hands on your boobs the first time we met." Adora decided to not point out that she had had other things on her mind at that time. Suffice it to say that they both decided to claim the other was to blame for how long it had taken for them to realize they both liked one another.

All in all, the change in their relationship didn’t really change that much about their lives. Mara and Roan already considered each other as brother and sister, neither even remembering a time when they hadn’t been a family. And back when Mara had learned to speak, she had been quick to follow Roan in referring to Catra as "mama". At first Catra had been unsure how Adora would react to that, but the blonde had simply shrugged it off, saying that both children could in turn just call her mom then. Looking back, she guessed that should have been a pretty clear clue.

******

On Sunday Catra and Adora packed a picnic basket and headed out to the park with their children. Mara and Roan were exited, running ahead and yelling at the adults to walk faster.

When they arrived at the park the two children quickly ran off to play with the other children. Mermista and Seahawk were there with their son Dylan, who was now five-years-old like Roan. Lonnie had also come, along with her daughter Alana, who was almost five. Spinnerella and Netossa, another couple who had previously spent time at Crimson, were there with their eight-year-old son Gale and four-year-old daughter Willow. Lastly there was Perfuma with her wife, Scorpia, and their daughter Flora, who was seven. 

Adora looked around and soon noticed a familiar woman arriving to the park. She waved enthusiastically. "Glimmer! I'm so happy you could make it."

The pink-haired woman waved back and Adora started making her way towards Glimmer and the lean, dark-skinned man walking behind her, pushing a stroller.

"Hi! It was so nice that you invited us." Glimmer exclaimed, smiling widely. "This is my husband, Bow."

The man reached out to shake hands with Adora. "Hello, nice to meet you, and thank you for inviting us."

“Oh, it was no problem,” Adora said. “The more the merrier. Unfortunately most of the other children are older than your little one, so hopefully she won’t get too bored.”

Bow waved his hand dismissively. “That’s not likely to happen; Luna here likes to play by herself. She seems to have a whole bunch of imaginary friends, don’t you, little munchkin?” He bent to lift the toddler up from the stroller and placed her on his hip, continuing to babble to the little girl.

Glimmer shook her head fondly. “Okay, well if you don’t mind, I’m going to go get something to eat. It seems that your sons are going through a growth spurt and demand nutrition.”

“Why are they always _my children_ when you have morning sickness or they wake up in the middle of the night but are _your children_ when they learn to walk earlier than average?” Bow pouted.

“That’s just how it works,” Glimmer stated, then placed a small kiss on her husband’s mouth and turned to walk over towards the tables where the food was laid out.

Adora shifted her gaze between the two spouses, but seeing that the man was looking at his wife‘s retreating back with an affectionate smile she decided that this was probably an inside joke between the couple and not a real argument. She exchanged a few more words with Bow, before letting the man go take his daughter out to play and deciding to follow Glimmer.

As she arrived to the picnic tables she saw Glimmer hanging off of Mermista in a slightly uncomfortable looking hug, especially taking into consideration their height difference and Glimmer’s rounded stomach. The whole thing was more than a little strange; Mermista wasn’t usually one to be caught in public displays of affection. 

“So, apparently your new best friend is childhood friends with Mermista,” Catra said, appearing next to the blonde. “Small world, huh.”

Adora couldn’t help but nod. “It really is. Who would have thought?”

“It’s amazing to see you again!” Glimmer had finally let go of Mermista and was now beaming at the other woman. “We were so worried about you. But any time we tried to ask your parents about you they would simply clam up.”

“Yeah, turns out your super old-fashioned father doesn’t really like it when you start dating ‘the wrong boy’.” Mermista drawled out, trying to look indifferent. “And apparently he likes it even less when you get pregnant by said boy, choosing to disown you for ‘betraying the family honor’ or some such. But whatever, we’ve built a good life for ourselves here.”

All around them people let out shocked gasps. Adora could understand why; this was the most she’d heard Mermista share about her past, ever.

Glimmer got an angry look in her eyes, murmuring something about “Wait till my mother hears about this” before pulling Mermista into yet another hug and starting to ask the other woman to tell her everything about her new life.

Adora smiled softly. She then felt a bump against her arm and turned to see Catra grinning at her. Around them, children laughed and yelled and played, and the adults were talking and sharing food. She felt warmth gathering in her chest and sniffled slightly.

“Aww, are you tearing up a little?” Catra placed her arms around Adora and laid her head on the blonde’s shoulder.

“I’m just happy, it’s all.” Adora murmured, pulling Catra closer to her and snuggling into the other woman. “Growing up, I never thought I’d get to have this.”

“What?”

“Family,” Adora answered. “Happiness. Friends. Love. All of it.”

Catra kissed Adora softly on the cheek. “Well, you do. And good luck trying to get rid of any of us.”

Adora let out a sound that was halfway between a chuckle and a sob. “Never.”

The two women continued embracing, caught up in a world of their own. Or at least until an excited shout of, “Mama, mom, come, they have cookies!” brought their attention back to the present.

Catra laughed, reluctantly pulling out of Adora’s embrace. “Come on, you heard Roan, apparently there are cookies.”

“It would be a shame to miss out on the cookies, especially if Spinnerella made them.” Adora took a hold of Catra’s hand and they started making their way to where their children were jumping gleefully next to a plateful of - some admittedly pretty delicious looking - cookies.

“Okay, now listen up, little monsters. No more than two cookies each,” Catra told the children, fluffing their hair as she crouched down to look them in the eye.

Adora watched with a fond expression on her face as Catra negotiated with the children on the matter of how many cookies was an acceptable number to have. The sun shone brightly, highlighting everything in a beautiful glow. Everything was perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that was it. I want to once again thank each and every person who read this and I hope you enjoyed it. I also hope that all of you find your own happiness and a place where you belong, be it with the family you were born into or with the one you made along the way.


End file.
